


the world is a dream that you must wake into

by unchartedsea



Category: Green Gables Fables
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Poetry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-26
Updated: 2015-06-26
Packaged: 2018-04-06 05:40:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4210062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unchartedsea/pseuds/unchartedsea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gilbert's whole world is changed when he sees it through Anne's eyes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	the world is a dream that you must wake into

Gilbert thought he knew Avonlea; it was mapped into him so thoroughly that the roads and dirt paths could be traced in his veins. If you blindfolded him, he could stroll from one end of town to another with ease. Every day was the same red-brick school, warm house, winding river. In fifth grade, he created a small-scale model of the town for an assignment, and it still sat in the corner of his room. Sometimes he saw Avonlea that way: tiny rows of cardboard homes and stores, colors fading, shrinking steadily as he grew bigger.

 

_you can never tire of the stars, you can never outgrow the earth_

 

He had always enjoyed rowing with the current, and he had let life carry him like that, floating along with the push and pull of expectations. Gentleman, courteous, diligent, bright, charming, exemplary. He had even been carried in and out of relationships that way, each girlfriend drawing him near and then gently setting him adrift again. He hadn’t minded.

But trying to win Anne’s friendship hadn’t quite been like fighting the current. Rather, it felt like he was trying to walk on water, and every time he got near her the tides shifted and unbalanced him. Gilbert felt her presence ripple through his life, causing him to continually trip over himself. He had to readjust to find stability again.

It wasn’t just that she was discovering Avonlea, transforming his familiar haunts with her fresh perspectives. It was as if she had a sight that was unachievable, a clarity in her eyes that saw colors he could never see, indiscernible shades and layers. Every trembling raindrop, every leaf glowing in sunlight, they became entrancing. Now walking home, he had to stop and catch his breath.

 

_the world is a dream that you must wake into_

 

He didn’t have her way with language, but he started to see Anne’s poetry peeking out of his surroundings. Phrases that she’d used found their way into the margins of Gilbert’s notebooks, doodled thoughtlessly. Every sentence of hers was a composition. If he ever confessed his feelings to her, he knew every word would be woefully inadequate, falling far short of what he wanted to convey.

He wanted desperately, more than he’d ever admit, to sit side-by-side each day and have Anne show him the universes in her mind. She could pluck possibility out of the air, and buoy up his dreams by painting them in front of his eyes. She was fierce, and clever, and passionate. She left him at a loss.

He felt as if his life had been a long slumber, eyes closed to his surroundings. Now he spent his summer mornings wandering with Anne, her fiery red hair tinted gold by the sun’s rays. Sometimes they breathed in the quiet and let nature unfold itself. Sometimes she lit up the sky with her smiles. But every day Gilbert trailed in her wake, watching as she made the world new in her hands.

 

_you are being summoned into an astonishing life_

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! This was a quick one-off, so only slightly proofread and with no beta. The poetry is supposed to be Anne's interwoven with Gil's thoughts; it's not directly relevant, but sorta touches on how Gilbert feels? 
> 
> P.S. There are definitely not enough Shirbert fics on AO3 to satisfy me, especially because they have the best ship name of all time. I might write a less abstract one in the future...


End file.
